My Anime/Manga of 2021

I lived the NEET life for a few months this year and watched/read so many things. This post will contain everything I’ve started/finished this year.

Note; this post is very long.

Anime

My Anime/Manga of 2020

I looked through my list and realized that even if it’s a year with lockdowns, I barely have any titles to add here. So this year I will do something different and just comment on everything I started/finished this year.

Here goes!

My Anime/Manga of 2019

It’s been an eventful year. My health hasn’t been the best for the past 3 or 4 months, but hopefully 2020 will be a great year. So now, here goes my list of 2019!

(And yeah, because I had a very bad flu and some sinus problems, I’m only releasing it now. My list is also really short this year because I’ve been studying like crazy….)

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I’ve decided to add a new section this year, hopefully it’s better. Without further ado, let’s start off with…

My Anime/Manga of 2018

This year I haven’t seen, nor even completed most of the things I watched due to life things, but here goes my list of 2018! Once again: no one title gets more than one award, spoilers are marked, recipient can be released any year but I have to start/finish it in 2018, and every award is based solely on my preference.

As a side note, this is more of a ‘shove everything I watched/read’ into one post.

(I’m late because I just came back from a 10-day trip to Turkey and somebody had a heart attack on the plane and we had to land in Calcutta for four hours because the doctor didn’t want to risk him going on for around two more hours until we reach our destination and the emergency team hit the patient in the face with the stretcher while he was walking out from the plane)

Best Action (Anime): Sirius the Jaeger (2018)

Werewolf boy vows to kill all vampires.

Sirius the Jaeger is sort of overlooked. It has a typical vampire-werewolf revenge plot, but made it up here because of its excellent pacing, action choreography, and development of its main character, Yuliy. Each episode is fun to watch and spurs the story forward. It is one of my top favourite of the year.

Reviews here.

Best Action (Manga): Gunnm – Battle Angel Alita (1990)

It’s tough being a cyborg.

Battle Angel Alita, or Gunnm (Ganmu), is an epic saga about the very long life of a female cyborg called Alita/Gally. It’s so good that I finished the entire series in two days. Looking forward to the movie adaptation coming out later this year.

Honorable Mention: Shirayukihime to 7-nin no Shuujin (2012)

Arm transplant gone wrong.

A depressing battle to the death between people whose special powers kill themselves. Shirayukihime is intense and is a page turner from beginning to end.

Best Sci-fi: AKIRA (1988)

Psychic boy crashes the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Well, should I say anything else? AKIRA is a loved classic and it’s very clear why.

Review coming out later.

Best Historical: Otoyomegatari (2008)

Mr. Smith in Central Asia.

Mind-blowing art, in depth research, lovable characters. What more does this manga need? I love Amir and Karluk and their day to day life, but Henry Smith’s adventures are just as great. Love this manga so much.

Best Psychological: Texhnolyze (2003)

Dude gets new limbs.

Confusing as heck but great portrayal of psychological trauma. Mostly about main dude grunting and guys pissing themselves and a lot of staring, but Texhnolyze is stylish and strangely enjoyable.

My Anime/Manga of 2017

100th post!

This year has been eventful and a major turning point in my life. It has also been a year of finishing anime I keep putting off since 2013. Rules are the same: no one title gets more than one award, spoilers are marked, recipient can be released any year but I have to start/finish it in 2017, and every award is based solely on my preference.

 

 

 

Unlike last year, there are many good titles I’ve watched/read this year, so strap on and let’s go!

First, Best Action (anime) goes to: Youjo Senki (2017)

 

 

 

Tanya the child soldier is actually a Japanese salary man reincarnated. Will she survive Being X’s trials or will she fall to the madness of war?

Youjo Senki is something that I didn’t even think was going to be good, but it was a love at first sight and I still like it a lot. My reviews on Youjo Senki are here.

Honorable Mention: Juuni Taisen (2017)

It was really hard deciding which one I liked better. I love Juuni Taisen’s characters better than Youjo Senki’s, but action-wise Juuni Taisen is more of a realistic one-slash-death and Youjo Senki has more exciting battles, so too bad. Reviews here.

Best Action (manga) goes to: Gunka no Baltzar (2011)

Baltzar is sent to be an instructor at a crumbling military academy in a neighboring nation. Faced with strained alliances, riots, and enemy attacks, will Baltzar be able to lead his students through perils?

Blend of politics and military, each chapter filled with tension, Gunka no Baltzar is a very enjoyable (and educational) read.

Honorable Mention: Killing Bites (2013)

Giving literal meaning to the phrase, “The honey badger doesn’t give a shit.” Killing Bites is a guilty pleasure that I find more entertaining than Terra Formars.

Best Sci-fi goes to: Paprika (2006)

Things go wrong when you poke around in people’s minds.

Paprika is very imaginative and vibrant. I saw it twice this year, one time alone and one time with my friends at college and I still did not understand the ending. But it was really well-told, much characterization is subtle, and it takes more than one time to kind of understand it.

Honorable Mention: Blame! (2017)

In an endless city, Killy, a man in black, searches for human with the Net Terminal Gene.

Badass action and amazing theme song, though the movie only touches the tip of the iceberg of the manga. Still, Blame was an enjoyable watch. I did one post on it.

My Anime/Manga of 2016

That dream is to get a life.

I can’t believe it’s already my 3rd year on this blog. Time sure flies. Since I’m set on doing this every year, might as well lay down some rules for giving awards to anime/manga I’ve watched/read.

1. One award per one franchise in one year (so Yuri on Ice can’t get every award on the list, and neither can Ghost in the Shell)
2. MINIMUM SPOILER
3. The recipients can be released in any year, but I have to start/finish it in 2016
4. Awards are based solely on my opinion. Recommendations for next year are welcome! (If you want to see which ones I’ve already watched, check here.)

Since I haven’t seen or read as much as last year, this list might not fill every award, and I might add new ones.

To start off:

Best Sci-fi goes to: Ghost in the Shell

You can never go wrong with GITS. Its questions about humanity can be endlessly discussed. Live action starring Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow!) coming this year.

Best Historical goes to: Kaguya-Hime no Monogatari

Kaguya-Hime is an atmospheric and aesthetically pleasing anime movie. The art style is unique and the story of Kaguyahime’s struggles is fantastic and real. Kaguya-Hime is a break-off from traditional princess stories and you will find yourself rooting for the princess all the way while learning ancient Japanese culture.

Best Drama (anime) goes to: Re: Zero kara hajimaru isekai seikatsu

What’s better for drama than a hell loop? Although Re: Zero is a combination of the time loop and different world trope, it managed to get its own standing and became a very emotionally intense anime. (It may appear like harem but it’s not quite harem…)

Best Drama (manga) goes to: Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Onisarashi-hen

This twisted hell of a side story brought Higurashi back to its throne on my favorite manga list. Although a side story, Onisarashi has all the charms of the original Higurashi manga.

More below.

My Anime/Manga of 2015

New Year is supposed to be a time of reflection, so I’m going to give some awards to anime & manga I’ve seen/read this year because I never got in the mood to do last year’s.

To start off: Best Action (Anime) goes to: Arslan Senki

Tactical wars + nice ed theme + intriguing plot + adorable prince = no.1 in my rank. This story reminds me so much of a novel I used to write of a wimpy prince that lost his kingdom but man, Arslan Senki is on another level than my pathetic work.

Best Action (Manga) goes to: Eden: It’s an Endless World!

Excellent sci-fi/drama manga about humanity and the world. This manga is loaded with clever writing and detailed art. The characters are realistic and there are a lot of thing to reflect upon in this manga. I totally recommend this.

Honourable Mention: Girls of the Wild’s

The list continues…Click the Read More Button!